Rewind
by The High-Fiving Chimp
Summary: It has taken 13 years but Ash is now one of the most well known and respected Trainers there is. He is happily partnered with Dawn and a teacher for young trainers. But how will he react when he meets up with someone he left behind on his climb to fame? Title comes from the song Rewind by Paolo Nutini. Pearlshipping vs Advancedshipping
1. Chapter 1

"What was taking you _so long_?" Ash huffed as Dawn finally emerged from the shopping centre. She had been in there since six and it was now eight o'clock. It was freezing and people were now heading home with their coat necks pulled up to their noses.

"What? They had deals for the holidays!" She chirped as she scuttled towards him holding about ten bags. A cold wind ruffled Ash's raven black hair and he pulled his cap further on his head. Pikachu hopped from his shoulder and the mouse jumped into one of Dawn's bags, Ash chuckles as he sees the Pokémon's tail stick out as it rummaged around.

"Pi-pi!" It chirped with joy as it discovers a bottle of ketchup. It hopped from the bag back onto Ash's shoulder with the bottle in its little fists. The young man sniggers and scratches it under its chin. The mouse cooed as it licked the sauce from the top of the bottle.

"Yeah, I couldn't forget that." Dawn smiles at its antics "So, should we head back?"

"That's what I have been suggesting for the last two hours!" Ash sighed before turning around to walk down the streetlamp lit street with Dawn at his side. It was the start of November and the weather was cold and blustery, the black clouds in the navy sky indicated the presence of rain was due in the next hour or so. The shop's windows were lit and the Christmas decorations were already up along with banners announcing the apparently "low low prices!" of their products. Dawn always seemed to believe those things as she had been nipping in and out those shops for the last week or so.

As they walked down, a number of small boys would turn to stare at Ash as if he was Arceus. He was used to this, he was well known for his abilities in battles and his knowledge of Pokémon, which was thanks to Brock, a good friend of his who was coming to celebrate Christmas next month with hi and Dawn. A boy ran up to Ash with a Poke ball, begging him to sign it.

"I hope we don't get any more of your fans bugging us on Christmas." Dawn giggles as Ash signed the boy's Poke ball. Ash smirks as he hands it back to the boy, who ran off waving it towards his friends. He remembered being that way when he was ten, wide-eyes, eager and easily fascinated by the world of battling. He would never have guessed thirteen years later he would be famous for it.

"Oh, and your fans are better?" Ash smirks at Dawn's annoyed expression "I hope they save their screaming for the contest."

Dawn turned to smile at him and as she does, her left foot flies up in front of her due to a patch of black ice. She lets out an "Aieeh!" as the bags in her hands went soaring. Ash grabs Dawn by her arms before she hit the deck. Pikachu yelped as it tumbled from Ash's shoulder when he bent down.

"Oh, thank you, Ashy." She pants as she was lifted back onto her black Ugg boot covered feet. She dusted her pink jacket off and started gathering her dropped items, a Nurse Joy from a close PC scuttled out on her heels, giving Ash a fright.

"I saw you fall over, are you ok?" She asked as she helped Dawn to pick up her goods. "Did you bang your head or anything?"

"No, Ash caught me." Dawn said, waving her hands a little in a dismissive manner. Ash grabbed the ketchup bottle, which now had a dented top but he only had it for a second before the mouse Pokémon grabbed it back.

As the three walked further on, the sound of sirens caught Ash's attention. What alerted him the most was that they sounded close. Dawn seemed on edge too, she was clinging to her bags even more now. She kept glancing inside them.

"No need to worry, Dawn." Ash said, saying the same words she always said to him when he was frazzled.

"I know! But with those sirens, I don't want anything to have been stolen!"

"Nurse Joy made sure everything was in there, chill out." Ash smirked before planting a peck on her cheek. That seemed to help as she returned the favour.

"Come on, it's getting colder, I don't want to catch a-"

**CRASH!**

"-AARGH!" Another person had collided with Ash, knocking him to the ground. Dawn yelped and side-stepped out of the way. Pikachu leapt onto her shoulder to avoid being crushed under Ash as he fell.

"Get off!" Ash yelled as he shoved the person off of him, knocking her onto her backside. She had her eyes screwed shut and was rubbing the back of her head. She was wearing a pair of blue shorts and a black hoodie with a black bandana around her mouth and nose.

"What the hell was that for!?" Ash snapped as he scrambled attempted to get up but struggled due to the frozen ground.

The person opened her eyes but before she could answer him, Officer Jenny careered around the corner on a motorbike, the red and blue light flashing on the back of it.

"STOP!" She shouted.

The girl swears before scrambling over Ash, he gagged as she stood on his chest while escaping. He hears the motorbike zoom past him, presumably in the same direction as the girl.

"Ash! Oh, god are you ok?" Dawn pulled him to his feet. Ash groans and massages his lower back. He turned around to see both Officer Jenny and the girl had disappeared.

"I'm fine, don't worry." He answered her.

"Chu!" Pikachu jumped back onto Ash's shoulder.

"I'm ok, mate." He scratched Pikachu behind one of its ears. The Pokémon sighed contently and settled on his shoulder like a parrot.

"Who the hell was that? She must have done something pretty bad to annoy Officer Jenny that much." Dawn pouts in the direction the fugitive ran off in.

Ash scratched his head, thinking for a moment. Suddenly, something hit him. In the slit second he saw the person's eyes he noticed that they were a deep sapphire blue which were wild and shining with fear.

Where had he seen them before?

"Wait…" He mutters. His chocolate eyes suddenly brighten.

"What?" Dawn asked with deep confusion in her voice.

Ash turned back around in the opposite direction.

".._May_?"


	2. Chapter 2

"Are_ sure_ you are _sure_, Ash?" Dawn asks strictly from the depth of the last shopping bag. They were back in the kitchen of their large home. Only the side lamps had been turned on and the fire was crackling merrily in the living room. A perfect atmosphere for a cold, windy night. But Ash's thoughts were more rattled than the leaves on trees outside rather than settled like the warmth in the kitchen.

"Yes, Dawn, for the last time!" Ash sighed through his teeth as he placed a can of tinned beans in the cupboard "It_ was_ May, I know it was!" Dawn rolls her eyes and continues to rummage through the bag.

Ash wanted to be sure, but he wasn't. He was still raking his mind over what happened. Part of him wanted to believe it was May he had encountered, he could recognise those eyes anywhere. But most of him was still conflicted. Why would _May_ be on the run from Officer Jenny? She had never done a malicious deed in her life… as far as he knew. What did she do? Did she get into a fight? Did she steal? Did she… Ash shook that thought out of his skull, no, she couldn't have. She was not that kind of person. Ash knew the kind of person she was: kind, optimistic, sweet, is more driven by her stomach rather than her head, a wee bit insecure…

"Oh no!" Ash jumped from his trance and whipped his head around to see Dawn pulling at her hair and her face had suddenly gone pale, despite the house was relatively warm.

"What's the matter?" Ash asked automatically.

"Th-The glass Ponyta I bought as a present for my mum! It's not here!" Dawn squealed before diving back into the bag to re-check. Her head emerged a second later, the rim of her lovely eyes were water filled. Ash hesitated and rubbed at his chin, judging by her reaction, that thing must have cost a lot.

"Ok, ok, i-it must have been left by accident when you slipped on that ice." Ash said in a calmed voice, even though he, himself was worrying. If she had lost that thing for good, she would be devastated.

"How about I go look for it, hm? It must still be around that area." He suggested with a shrug. He would not mind going back out into the cold to find it, he had his smoker's jacket with the furry neck to keep him warm.

"Could you?" Dawn turned her tear stained face towards him.

"Sure, it's not far."

Dawn's once anxious face suddenly relaxed and she gave him a grateful smile "Thanks, Ashy. Should I come too?"

"Nah, I'll be fine."

"Ok, I'll have dinner ready by the time you come back, ok?" She chirped, seemingly forgetting about the Ponyta and swung open the food cupboards before pulling out pots.

"Alright, Dawn, I'll be back in a wee bit." As Ash ventured out the door, Pikachu slinked through and jumped into Ash's hood. It chirped and settled into it like a nest, this made Ash chuckle.

He made his way back into the town, the streets were still brightly lit and the festive advertisements shone as bright as before. There were even less people. Good, this should make the search even easier.

"Pikachu, would you mind helping me look for Dawn's glass Ponyta?" Ash tickled the top of the yellow Pokémon's head.

"_Chaaaa_…" it yawned as it emerged from its slumber and hopped from his hood. It then started to skip about, twitching its nose before jumping into a patch of grass at the side of the road to investigate.

Ash walked further down the street, his nose almost on the pavement, she needed that Ponyta is back! Ash hated to see how badly she would react if he did not find it.

Pikachu scurried over towards Ash.

"You find it?" He asks in desperation.

"Chu…." The mouse droops its ears sadly. Ash sighed heavily and continued to walk down the street.

"Pi?" the pokemon stopped in its tracks and lifted its small black nose into the air, it inhaled deeply before its small round eyes widen.

"You smell something?" Ash asked, he hoped he was right. The Pokemon pointed his nose towards somebody walking with their back to the two of them. Below the black hood, Ash's eyes directed towards the person's fanny pack. The zip was not completely done up and for a split second, he saw a brilliant flash of orange.

"HEY!" Ash shouted towards the person. The person jumped as if someone had struck them with a steaming hot poker before taking off. The mouse pokemon screeched and emitted lightning from its tail, it only zaps the back of the person's retreating heels. Ash leapt off into a sprint, he found that he was considerably faster than this person as he managed to catch up with them just as his knees and thighs began to burn. As the two approached the PC the runaway's right foot suddenly came up in front of them as they hit the same patch of black ice as Dawn did before, causing them to go down and Ash to trip over the person. Realising this, Pikachu dug through the person's fanny pack and yanked out Dawn's Ponyta.

"Oh thank god, thanks." Ash took the vulnerable item from the Pokemon's small yellow fists and putting it gently in his pocket. He turned his chocolate coloured eyes sharply towards the person who had now risen up to their knees. They moved over and slumped on the curb and looked down.

"Oh, no! Don't do that 'woe is me' routine, I'm taking you in!" Ash growled as he reached to grab the person's sleeve.

"…Wah?" the person squeaks before looking up towards him. A pair of blue eyes staring into his.

"M-May!?" He ripped the hood down before she could stop him. She looked up at him, her body shaking.

Ash took several steps back from her. He had not heard anything about May for about five years, she must have been about twenty one now. But she was nothing like he remembered. Just on her left temple there was a small Ho-oh who's right wing curved towards her eyebrow which was not the biggest difference. Her skin was almost white, dark semi-circles settled under her eyes, her hair was shaggy and unkempt, her face was smudged with dirt and her elfin nose was a reddish purple. Even under her clothes Ash knew she had lost a considerable amount of kilos. Overall, she just did not look (or smell) healthy.

This was not how he remembered her at all. He had been traveling with her since he was twelve and she was ten. They met when May was a rookie trainer just starting her journey. For the first while they were together, he was more annoyed by her than anything because of her inexperience, how she whined most of the time and seemed to care more about her stomach than her actual career as a co-ordinator. But after some time that mostly changed and he had grown quite attached to her. The last time he had seen her, she had a relatively good career in Contests and he even saw her on the TV or in the newspaper a number of times but shortly after he left for Sinnoh, she suddenly did not seem to appear on those things any more, nor did people ever talk about her.

He would have gone back to find out what was going on, but he was distracted by his own climb to fame and Dawn, who had taken May's place as his partner.

"A-Ash…?" She mumbles, covering her mouth with a fist. There was something about the way she was looking at him which caught his attention, it was as if she was finding it hard to focus fully onto his face. Ash bent down to her level. So he had been right. It was May being persuded by Officer Jenny before. But why? Probably for the same thing she had just tried to do there.

What was he supposed to say? On the one hand, he was happy to see her again after five years apart but on the other, she had tried to rob Dawn. That had to be sorted out first in his mind.

Ash shook off his daze and immediately began to play cop "What the hell were you doing with Dawn's statue!?" He spat close to her face, causing her to wince.

The girl took a moment to answer "I- I didn't know it was –**ATCHOO-** hers! I just found it on the ground, I swear!" she put up her hands in defence, Ash noticed her finger tips were blue but also about the way she was talking. Her words were rolled together and she seemed to stumble over them. Was she drunk? Ash partnered that fact with how she was looking at him and that seemed to confirm it in his mind.

"…Really?" He asked. Pikachu took his side as it glared towards the girl, subtle sparks spiking in its cheeks.

"Yes!" She yowled, she put her hands to her mouth and emitted a throaty cough which cause her diaphragm to jump as she did. Ash noticed this, along with the fact that she was shaking quite violently, obviously due to the cold.

"Then why did you run from me?" He quizzed.

"I thought you were the police." She answered him before looking away and coughing again.

"Why would you be afraid of the police?"

May looked away from him, she clearly did not know how to answer that one. Pikachu took this opportunity to investigate her fanny pack. The Pokemon pulled out a small stone from it and spat it out in Ash's hand. It was a vivid blue and in the shape of a Manaphy. Attached to it was a long and thin chain.

May turned her feeble eyes towards Ash and her eyes seemed to spark "No-no! Give that back!" but Ash held it out of reach before she could grab it from him.

"Where did you get this?" He demanded, holding it in front of her.

"It's mine!"

"Is this why Officer Jenny was chasing you? Because you took this?"

May covered her eyes with her hands, which seemed to answer his question.

Should he really be doing this? This was not the ideal way to re-introduce himself to her, barking at her like a drill sergeant and he knew that but what was he supposed to do? Give her a kiss?

"Listen, it's nice to see you again but Dawn wants this back." He stood up, leaving her on the curb and started the walk back to his house.

He had only gotten a few paces away when he realised that Pikachu was not following him. He turned around to see it perched next to May, it was gently patting her arm as if to comfort her.

"Pikachu, come on!" Ash called the mouse, motioning his shoulder towards it, inviting it on. But it wouldn't budge. May sighed, picked up Pikachu and stood up. Ash got the sudden volt that she was going to take it but she turned to face him meaning she wanted to give it to him seeing how it wouldn't move itself. Ash noticed her legs lacked muscle, and when she took a step forward, both feet gave way under her, causing her to fall forward onto the concrete. She let out a whine which caused Pikachu to squirm in her grip and jump back onto Ash.

"May!" He knelt next to her, he gently shook her "Are you ok?"

She turned her head to look at him and tried to get back up but she fell again. Ash winced as her thin body crashed back onto the pavement.

"Ah-a-Ash-" She gasped, her eyes were now wide and shining with fear, the exact same as earlier when she realised Officer Jenny was after her. "-I don't feel well…" She whimpered.

Ash narrowed his eyes, was she serious or was this a trick? If it was, it was a good act but the fact that she couldn't get up worried him.

"You can't stand up?" He asked, trying to sound calm despite the hairs rising on his neck.

"No-o…" She suddenly broke into sobs, Ash decided to let his guard down and helped her into a sitting position. She looked too helpless for this to be an act.

"…Ok, listen, I guess I can take you back with me to my house and I'll call a doctor from there, ok?" He said in a firm but gentle tone. May sniffed but nodded in agreement. Ash put one arm under her knees and the other around her armpits and lifted her up, she was much lighter than he first though she would be.

Pikachu grabbed the small statue in its fists and settles back into Ash's hood. As he walked home, he avoided any black ice, the last thing he wanted was to fall over and potentially crush her.

May looked up at him for a second before resting her head on his chest. He kept talking to her to keep her awake, which was difficult. He soon broke into a run when he was out of the town with no risk of black ice.

As he strides along towards their house, the same thoughts kept pounding through his skull. Why was May in Sinnoh? Why was she drunk and trying to rob people? How would Dawn react to this?

**Dun**** Dun**** DUN! **** Sorry it's not as good as the first one, Hopefully the third one will be better, which I will try to get up soon!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey people, got chapter 3 for you. Funny how this story is just over a few days old and already people are interested in it ^^ thanks a lot.**

Dawn hummed as she placed two plates of spaghetti and meatballs on the table before turning her attention to the lights in the kitchen, which had been left on. She wanted to remain optimistic that Ash would find her Ponyta, having spent four years with him, she knew that man was rather pig headed and would not back down for anything, even finding a small glass statue.

She settled onto the sofa and flicked on the television, her toes wriggle in her Picu slippers. She flicked through the channels, catching a glimpse of Ash during a battle a couple of times. She smiled a little, she couldn't help it, it was just funny to see him on TV. She thought fondly of Ash, she had done since they met, he was so protective and passionate about what he did and she found that admirable. But another thought seemed to slink into her mind.

He had spoken about May before, as far as she knew, they were once together as a couple, like she and him are now. He had mentioned her before but not enough for it to worry her, he would often just mention her during a conversation and then dust the topic of May to the side and focus on what he and Dawn were doing now. But how she seemed to have appeared in Sinnoh for some unexplained reason. She wanted to think that it was not May and Ash was just mistaken but that was another thing about him she knew: Ash never forgets a face. But Dawn didn't know what May looked like.

**Thud!**

Dawn jumped in her seat and took a second to look around, the sound had come from the front door.

"Ash, its open!" She called, standing up waiting for him to come in.

**Thud!**

"Ash! I said it was open!" She called again, crossing her arms and giggling a little bit but when the door went **Thud!** A third time, she moved around the couch towards the door. How could he not open the door himself?

"Come on… open up!" Ash growled before kicking the door a fourth time. It was freezing out here and May's condition had rapidly deteriorated. Her head flopped back over his arm instead of forward on his chest. Using his free hand he tried to move it back forward but her head kept falling back. Finally, the door opened. Ash was knocked with a sweep of warmth from inside the house and Dawn's eyes sparked and her mouth dropped as she saw May, barely conscious in Ash's arms

"Ash, what the f-"

"I'll explain in a minute, out of my way!" Ash barged past a spluttering Dawn and promptly placed May on the couch before moving her into the recovery position, despite the cold outside, her face and neck were soaked with sweat and her face looked flushed.

Dawn noticed this and immediately scurried to the kitchen to dampen a towel. Ash took a large fur blanket and threw it over May, tucking it in around her until she seemed to be in some type of cocoon. Even under it, she was shivering. Pikachu jumped from Ash's hood and perched itself close to May. The mouse tilted its head towards her and gently gave her a nudge. Dawn re-appeared with a damp towel and put it onto May's forehead, dabbing it gently, Ash was glad that Dawn was not confronting him about bringing, what was to her, some random girl he had come across and was rather interested in making her comfortable.

Ash placed Dawn's glass Ponyta in the kitchen as he got a cup of water. When he got back he noticed Dawn feeling May's forehead, she made a face and stood up.

"Ash, can you keep dabbing? I'm going to call a doctor." Dawn instructed as Ash perched next to May, slapping the damp towel in his hand before running up the stairs. Ash, seeing how he had no time to answer, tried to give May the water, but she couldn't swallow it and it came back up through her nose. Ash dried her off and continued to dab her forehead.

After a few moments he took a second to feel it for himself.

"Good god…" He muttered feeling the heat radiating off of May's face. She started whimpering louder as her body started to shiver more violently.

"Shh- hey, you're alright." Ash whispered, trying to sound comforting but really he was becoming more and more worried.

"I'm scared…"

"I know but Dawn's called a doctor and he'll be here before you know it." He said in a comforting voice. He then sighed heavily and rubbed the back of his neck, the guilt of how he treated her before had suddenly caught up and was weighing on his shoulders and neck.

"Listen, May, I'm sorry I was so harsh earlier. Just when I saw Dawn's glass statue in your fanny pack, I wanted to get it back for her but I don't think that justifies anything…" He dabbed her forehead again, unsure whether she was actually listening to his voice or staring into space. "It's just been ages since I've-"

May suddenly gasps and let out a violent cough which sounded as though it was coming from the depths of her trachea. She opened her mouth to answer him but all that came out was another cough which sounded equally as bad as the first.

Ash was about to continue before Dawn appeared and knelt next to him.

"I called him but he told me that he might find it hard to get here because of the storm." She said quietly so May couldn't hear. Ash's stomach dropped.

"What are we supposed to do?" He hissed through his teeth "She's getting worse!"

"He told us just to watch her and call him again if it got worse!"

Ash sighed heavily, he wanted to apologise fully to May and possibly get some answers of why she was in Sinnoh but now was not a good time for it. Looking back at her, she had her eyes shut, trying to sleep but judging by the look on her face, she was failing at it. Dawn brought their two dinner plates over and set them on the coffee table but Ash paid no attention to his.

"Ash, did you find the Ponyta?" Dawn asked after a number of minutes, making Ash jump. He had totally forgotten about it.

"Oh! Yes, I did, Pikachu, can you go fetch it?" He turned his attention to the Pokemon who chirped and scurried into the kitchen before running back towards them, the statue in its small mouth.

Dawn takes it from the little pokemon and held it up to inspect it. It was a lovely little thing, a pale glass body with shimmering orange like the sunset for its fiery mane and tail and its eyes.

"Oh, thank god! Thanks, Ash-" she gave him a smooch on the cheek "Where did you find it?"

Ash stuttered. He had already wondered about this, he didn't want Dawn to be mad at the girl whose life they were trying to save.

"It was at the side of the road, it landed in some grass."

"It wasn't broken?"

"No, just a bit dirty." Ash nodded as he said this and Dawn seemed to believe him. She placed it on the coffee table behind her before she pressed her ear to May's chest and listened for a second.

"Her breathing's laboured, I hope we don't have to wait long."

The minutes ticked by like hours, Ash's eyes were becoming heavier as he struggled to stay awake.

After being ordered by Dawn he laid on the couch opposite to the one May was on. He glanced at his Poochiana styled watch, seeing how it was now eleven pm. He had been sitting with her for two hours? It felt like forever. His lids started to get heavier.

_No, no! Don't go to sleep!_ A voice in his head commanded, _you need to watch her…._

His eyes snapped open to see light streaking through the window. How long had he been sleep? Glancing to the side, he saw something which made him jump. The sofa across from him was lacking May.

"Dawn!?" He yelped, his heart doing a backflip.

"Oh, now your awake, Ash Ketchum?" Dawn approached him with toast and Nutella. She looked exhausted and gave him his food. She tightened her housecoat and sat next to him.

"Wh-what happened to May?" He asked, his hand shaking a little.

"The doctor came about two hours after you went to sleep and, well he took her temperature and automatically called an ambulance. He said her condition was- wait…" She thought for a second "May? You mean the May you used to travel with?"

Ash suddenly realised what he did and face palmed "Yes, that was her." He said, he wasn't sure why he was worrying so much, May and Dawn had never met but Dawn knew that she used to be his travel companion and even his girlfriend for a while. That fact did not seem to bother her, but it bothered him. He did not know how to feel now. But he knew one thing, he had to go to the hospital to find out about May.

"We will go in a few minutes." Dawn said suddenly, as if she was reading his mind "I think they would let us in to see her now."

Ash's chest relaxed at these words only to have it tighten back up.

"Yeah, we should, I'll get the car started." Without even eating his toast, he raced out of the door. He needed to talk to her, to apologise, to give her the greeting he was supposed to.

**I know it's rushed but I'm going to be busy for the next few days so I might not get Chap 4 out for a few days. I've been wanting to write this forever and it's good to finally get started ^^ **

**See ya in the next update!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey, sorry it took me over a week to write this but here is chappie 4 for you!**

Ash's stomach was doing so many backflips you could have hired it to work in the circus. He twiddled his fingers anxiously as he waited to see May. He had tried half an hour ago but got shooed out of her room by a nurse, scolding him that May shouldn't be disturbed. But with her being in the ICU it was hard for him to relax.

Dawn seemed to have noticed his fidgety behaviour as she gave him a pat on his broad shoulder.

"I'm sure they will let us in in a few minutes, they still don't know what's wrong with her." She said in attempt of comforting him, trying not to let him onto the fact she was worried sick too.

"_But they should_! She's been here since one this morning!" Ash growled into his hands, shaking his head in frustration.

"I know but they have to be sure it's nothing serious-"

"Dawn! I'm _not_ a doctor and _I_ know it is serious!" They could not have honestly looked at her and think nothing was wrong. Since he woke up he could not think of anything besides May. He found it ironic really. Before yesterday he scarcely thought of May but now he could not take her off of his mind. He got up and began pacing up and down the corridor, Pikachu scurrying alongside him. The small yellow mouse jumped onto his head and perched like a small bird with its ears perked up fully.

Dawn watched him stride up and down the hall. He had been doing that for so long that she was surprised that a groove in the floor had not developed. She was slightly suspicious of his behaviour. He had spoken about May before but not into great detail nor did he seem interested but now that she had suddenly come from no-where, he was worrying himself sick. If he didn't care about May before, why is he panicking now?

An hour of pacing later, the nurse finally came out and turned her attention to a fidgety Ash.

"Are you Mr Ketchum?" She asked, Ash stopped in his tracks to nod. She didn't really have to ask, pretty much everyone knew his face. During his time pacing he did turn a number of heads in his direction.

"I take it you are a friend of Miss Maple?" She asked, causing Ash to nod again, "We've managed to improve her condition to stable and her fever's been brought down but we can't release her from ICU yet."

"Can I see her?" He blurted out, he was ready to punch something of the answer was no.

The nurse sighed "Yes, but if she's asleep don't wake her up." She answered him before ushering him to follow her.

"Ash, I think I'll… go to the cafeteria, I'll get you something." Dawn walked away before Ash could answer. He then followed the nurse into the ICU.

There were only a few patients in the room. May was at the far end, being fussed over by two nurses. He stopped when he spotted her, feeling the colour draining from his face.

She was naked under the blue cotton blanket covering her so Ash could see she was actually thinner than he had first thought. There was something hooked into her wrist and her nose. Due to the sterile environment, she had been cleaned as well as her hair which seemed to have that same fluffy texture to it he remembered. Ash gently ran it through his fingers, he forgotten how much he liked it. The girl was partly awake with her eyes only slightly open, he couldn't tell if she actually knew he was there.

When the nurses turned away from May, he gently nudged her white cheek.

"May?" He muttered.

"Gah!" Her eyes suddenly flew wide open, making Ash, who wasn't expecting this reaction, jump. Breathing heavily, she looked about sharply, totally bumfuzzled to where she was or what was happening. In her state, she noticed the thing attached to her nose, panicked and tried to pull it out.

"N-no!" Ash grabbed her hand away from it, causing her to yelp. Ash didn't want to get into trouble and get kicked out by another nurse. He tried to think of ways to calm her down.

"May? May, it's alright, it's just me!" He placed his hands on her skinny shoulders. He tried to get her to look him in the eye and finally managed. His chest started to feel heavy as he did. He could remember how her eyes used to be bright with optimism and life but now looked as though all the light had been taken from them, as if someone blew out a candle behind her irises.

He was about to say something else comforting before a hand suddenly batted his own off of May's shoulders. The two of them jumped and Ash turned his head to notice two nurses.

One of them gestured to the door, Ash automatically retaliated.

"Wh-what did I d-?"

"She's overstimulated, would you mind leaving, sir?" The nurse said, he could tell she was frustrated with him but was trying to mask it.

"N-no I was just-!"

"Please leave-"

"I didn't mean to-"

"Go-"

"But I-!"

"_Now, Mr Ketchum_!" The nurse said in such a hard tone, Ash had to shut up. He heard May give a soft grunt which made the nurse turn around to look at her. She wasn't sitting up but was trying to.

"No, it's alright, miss. He's a-" She suddenly gave a violent sounding retch and put both hands to her mouth which seemed to trigger a chain reaction in the surrounding nurses as they all flew into action. Ash could only watch as May was taken out of view by a curtain. Brilliant, just brilliant.

"Mr Ketchum, do I have to tell you again?" The same nurse growled behind him.

"Alright, _alright_!" he snapped, raising up his arms before slamming them back downward at the second 'alright' clutching his fists to tight his knuckles were white "I'm leaving!" He added before storming out of the ICU, causing a few of the patients to turn and look at him, he heard an elderly man ask if Ash had gotten his ass kicked at a battle. He was mostly right, except no Pokemon were involved with this one.

"They'll let you back in, Ash." Dawn assured him, noticing he was playing with his ramen. They were now in the cafeteria, a clean place, almost as if it had been sterilised like the ICU. It was not very busy. A few people were bustling about with their own business. A TV chattering quietly in the corner about some contest next month.

"I don't think they will…" He huffed sadly into his Cola "That's twice that's happened, they probably don't want me anywhere near her now." His hands were still quivering with annoyance at that stupid nurse.

"It isn't your fault that happened, Ash, I mean if May had just kept calm…"

He ignored the rest of her explanation as he was suddenly irritated at that first comment. Granted, he loved Dawn but she could be so oblivious at times.

"No, no, it was my fault, Dawn." He said firmly, stabbing a piece of chicken with his fork. "I scared her. I thought she knew I was there but-" he cut himself off to sigh through his teeth "I'll try to go see her later once everything is calm." He gave Pikachu –who was licking the remains of a ketchup packet- a scratch behind its ear and the mouse replied in a happy little chirp.

He had been thinking about what May was trying to tell the nurse before her illness (which he _still _didn't know, much to his annoyance) took over. He could guess what she was going to say after 'He's a…' He guessed she was going to say 'friend' but they hadn't spoken in five years. Did she think of him as a friend? Was that why she was here? To find him?

"So-" Dawn's voice broke into his thought, slapping him back into reality, "What is the relationship between you and May, anyway?" She asked him, he could see a suspicious glimmer in her eye. He figured he had to answer gingerly.

"Well… we met when she was ten and we… just travelled together. Her brother, Max came with us, oh and Brock." He stopped for a moment, he just realised how great it felt to think that far back, it made him feel uplifted, it was definitely one of the best times in his life, travelling with them.

"To be honest, she was quite hopeless to start with so she didn't do too well at Contests to begin with and well… just knew nothing about Pokemon." Ash couldn't help but smirk a little when he remembered her first attempt at a battle which obviously didn't go very well. His eyes glazed over as he remembered how frustrated she'd get if it didn't work out. She even failed at catching at Pokemon, leaving her Torchick to be her only companion for a while but, oh how happy she was when she finally caught her first one, a Wurmple who soon became a Beautifly and May's Contest partner.

"Well, over time, May and I grew quite close-"

"How close?" Dawn butted in, narrowing her eyes.

"_Close enough_." He answered abruptly, sheesh what was her problem today "And, well we were great friends." He decided to leave out the fact she was his girlfriend for a short time.

"Well…" Dawn took a sip from her glass of juice "What's May like?" She asked. Ash lifted an eyebrow, why did she want to know that? Oh well, he might as well answer.

"Umm… Well as far as I remember she's nice, confident, clever, optimistic…sweet…" He seemed to set himself into another trance before he suddenly grabbed himself out of it.

"Uh, ah, she also_ really_ likes food." He said.

"As much as you?" Dawn asked with a little giggle.

"More actually." Ash said, unable to stop himself from smiling "She could probably eat more than I can, shit-" he smacked his palm on the table "I once saw her eat _twenty-nine_ bowls of ramen in one sitting!" He said, remembering it fully. Twenty-nine bowls and none of it showed, she still had that same slim figure she had before eating. It was little quirks like that which made him love her that much. Some could brand it as gluttony, others could call it unique. Ash was in the latter but it seemed Dawn was in the former.

"Hm… that's interesting…" Dawn said before leaving to go to the loo.

Ash was a bit puzzled, why was she acting this way? He decided to forget about that for a moment and slurped on his ramen, seeing how he hadn't eaten since lunch yesterday, he was rather famished.

_I might get another after this one, _he thought as he scooped up the last of it with a spoon, _I could take May a couple of these, the food there must be awful…_

He stopped as he realised what was possibly bothering Dawn so much. Since he was kicked out of the ICU, he had only talked about May and thought about May. It was puzzling him as well. That whole time he had been talking about her to Dawn, he was finding himself feeling uplifted as he remembered these things about her and he hadn't been able to stop. He sighed as he put his tray in a rack.

He sat back at the table and looked at Pikachu, who was now lying on its back, stuffed with ketchup. The sooner he can see May again, the better.

**Going to do May's point of view in the next chapter, might take a while to write but then again maybe not. Will get it up when possible.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hey, I'm now on exam leave for 4 weeks so I should be able to update quicker than I have been.**

May spent the next number of days drifting in and out of consciousness, she had very little memory of that time, just the nurses muttering something about double pneumonia.

When May finally opened her eyes she was a bit startled to see she had been taken into another room, different to the ICU. She sighed and closed them again, she couldn't care where she was now, the aching in her chest and muscles were distracting enough.

She had hated in the ICU with all the nurses fussing over her and getting poked and prodded in places that shouldn't have been. But the worst part had to be when Ash was kicked out. She wished they would have let him stay, it had been five years and just when she finally found him, he was taken away again.

May sighed and rolled over to face the wall before pressing her head against the cold plaster, which was actually comforting. The same thoughts kept pounding through her head, was Ash happy to see her again or will he reject her again? She tried not to, but she started to edge towards the latter seeing how he acted the night before and the fact that he obviously had another girl in his life.

The girl shut her eyes and seemed to drift into an uneasy sleep. As she slipped into this slumber, she began to reminisce what happened five years ago…

(**Flashback! Woo-hoo!**)

_May stared at the orange sunset glimmering under the one in the sky. She dipped her toes into the water and let the coolness run over her feet. She sighed lightly and continued her gaze out to the sea. Ash was behind her, sitting on a bench and licking an ice cream cone. She looked behind her to see he was holding another one. She automatically sat next to him and started licking hers, but ended up eating it so quick she felt a rush of cold in her head._

"_That's what you get." Ash chuckled as she gave a small squeal and grabbed her head with her free hand._

"_Ow- you could be a little more sympathetic, Ash Ketchum." She said, trying to sound angry but a small giggle following it ruined the tone she was going for. She was hoping he would join in but he seemed to have directed his eyes to his feet, now totally ignoring his ice cream and May. The girl tilted her head and scooted closer to him._

"_Ash, you ok?" She asked, giving him a little nudge on his shoulder._

"_Hmm?" he looked towards her, his eyes unfocused "Oh, yeah I'm fine, why do you ask?"_

"_You aren't eating your ice cream." May answered before popping the last of her cone in her mouth and crunching on it._

"…_I'm not very hungry… here." He put his partly eaten ice cream in her hand before she could answer him. Liking it, she watched him approach the pier before he stood on the edge, staring out at the water. A little worried, May walked up behind him. He didn't turn around._

"_Ash… I know something is wrong... what is it?" she asked quietly, an uneasy feeling rising in her stomach. The young man turned around to face her, his eyes gleaming. Was he sad or angry? With Ash, it was usually hard to tell. He let out a heavy sigh, so deep it caused his chest to heave._

"_May, I guess I should have said this earlier…. But I'm going to Sinnoh… tonight."_

_As soon as those words escaped his lips, May's face drained of its colour and her hands started shaking, causing her to drop her ice cream._

"_Wh-what?" She squeaked. Out of all the things that could have shattered at that moment, why did it have to be her heart?_

"_Sinnoh… it's further away but I heard the Gym Leaders are great. It will help me on my journey." Ash continued, with his back to her now. She couldn't read his emotions, was he happy about this or upset?_

"_B-but you said you would-" she rubbed her right arm with her left hand "You said you would come with me to Johto. You promised!" _

_He winced at her becoming more upset "I know I did, but May, I need this! It will get me a step closer to becoming-"_

"_A Pokemon Master, I know! But I-"_

"_You have Drew and Harley, don't you? They could help you."_

"_Them!? Ash, they aren't my friends, their rivals! And you know what Harley's like…" She wiped her eyes with the back of her hand, "Ash, please!" She squeaked, becoming more desperate "Don't go!"_

_Ash sighed and put his large hands on her shoulders, forcing her to look at him "Look, you're over-reacting, it's not that bad. I'll write to you and-"_

_He got cut off by May shaking her head and pulling away from him. She turned her back on him, her shoulders quivering._

_Ash sighed through his incisors "May, stop it! I'm still going to Sinnoh, I need this. I thought you'd be happy…"_

_May lifted her head a little as he said this. She sighed heavily. _

He's right, _she thought, _I'm being selfish.

"_No, no I am happy. It's just…" She tried to get the words out "I need you too-"_

_Ash threw his arms in the air, May realised she probably said the wrong thing. _

"_No! Don't start that…" She sighed and started pacing "May, I've loved travelling with you, really I have. You've really helped me and I love you for it but I need more!"_

_Both of them seemed taken aback by his last statement. May turned her back on him again, her heart suddenly weighing a number of kilograms in her chest. Behind her she heard Ash give a small 'Oh' as if he just realised what he said._

"_May, I-"_

"_No." May turned around to face him. "Your right, I'm being selfish."_

"_You are-?"_

"_Yeah, you should go to Sinnoh, it's part of your dream."_

"_But what about-"_

"_I'll be fine, honestly. Like you said, Drew and Harley will be there. You want to go, right?"_

"_Um, yes I do but-"_

_May waved her hand a little "Seriously, Ash, its ok. Like you said, we'll write! Right?"_

_He nodded "Yeah, we will, I can write to you as soon as I'm in Sinnoh." He was smiling now, May forced herself to smile back at him._

_Two hours later, he was gone. May watched the ferry slink out of the dock and soon out of sight. _

_It was only then did she break down._

(**Flashback finished, thank god**)

May groaned as she opened her eyes again. Everything was aching but she was able to roll herself onto her back. The room was dimly lit. She looked at the clock to her left. Eleven am? She had been asleep for a whole day?

May shut her eyes again, trying to forget about her memories but failed.

A nurse pulled her curtain back to check her pulse.

"Morning!" She chirped, May huffed. "Did you sleep well?"

"...Kinda." she sighed in a gravely voice. She wished the nurses would leave her alone. She didn't want to see anyone. After she left, she rolled onto her stomach, putting her face into the pillow. She tried to back to sleep but only seemed to drift in and out of it, waking every few minutes to either be turned over or to have a nurse check her heart rate or something.

A few hours later, she heard another nurse approaching her bed. May groaned softly, why couldn't they leave her alone?

"You have visitor, May." The nurse said in a cheery voice as she put the lollipop stick on May's tongue to check her throat.

"Tellimtogoawah."

"Sorry?"

May spat out the stick "Tell them to go away." She growled in such a way that it rattled her already sore throat, pulling her knees to her chest. She meant it.

"Well this particular gentleman-"

"NO!" May kicked the bottom of the bed "I don't want to!"

Ash poked his head around the door, "Um... I could come back later…"

May stopped as she heard his voice, she stuttered.

"N-no, you… come in." She croaked before coughing into a napkin. Feeling rather stupid now.

Ash nodded and sat in a little chair next to May's bed. The nurse had gone to tend to another patient, leaving them alone.

Neither of them said anything for a number of minutes. May just continued to stare at him. Now able to see him clearly, she could see he had not changed much since the last time she saw him. He was taller, broader and a small moustache developing above his lip but the differences stopped there. He still had that tanned skin, the unruly coal black hair and his chocolate eyes.

"So, how are you feeling?" Ash broke the awkwardness of the silence.

"A bit better…" May answered him, looking down at her knees.

"Oh, I almost forgot," He took out a Tupperware. As he opened the top, a rich smell reached May's nose, suddenly making her aware of her empty stomach.

"I brought you some chicken noodles." He added before perching himself on the edge of the bed. May sighed heavily and turned her head away. She heard Ash shift a little in his position.

"Umm, you don't want it?" He asked, sounding a bit confused. May expected this reaction, if you rewind back a number of years, she would probably have snatched it from him and wolfed it down but she didn't have the will.

Ash was indeed worried. But he knew how to get her attention.

"Well, if you don't want it, I'll have it." He said before swirling some of the noodles around a fork, as if he was going to eat it.

"No!" And, just as he predicted, there was a flash of a pair of hands and the Tupperware had disappeared from his grip. Smirking a little, he turned to see May, gripping onto it, looking at him, sparks of subtle anger flashing from her eyes, "I didn't say that!"

Ash had to laugh, even in her weak state and with no appetite she still refused to have her food taken.

"Ok, ok." He raised his hands at her glare "I was just kidding."

May played with the noodles before she finally began nibbling on them. Much to Ash's relief.

"So, May…" Ash scratched his head "How have you been?" He asked, obviously trying to spark a conversation. May didn't want to answer, she didn't want him to think any lower of her than he did.

"Not bad." She answered as she put a few strands of noodles in her mouth. "You?"

"Oh, umm- things have been good." He answered her "I'm a teacher now."

"For what?"

"Preparing kids for their journeys. You know Pokemon care and how to battle and such."

"Sounds like you doing well."

May remembered when she first started her journey she was completely ignorant to what she was supposed to do and making an ass of herself in front of people far more superior in knowledge.

"So… May. What are you doing now?" Ash asked her, May figured she should give him an answer.

"I'm ok, I guess…. Well not ok…"

"Yeah, what's wrong anyway?"

"Double Pneumonia."

"Double what!?"

"They said it is starting to clear…" May sighed, lying back with her hands on her stomach. She had only eaten about one third of the noodles, but that seemed enough to make her feel queasy.

Ash sighed, "Umm, do you want to be left alone or-?"

"No!" She squeaked, turning her head towards him, sounding pleading. It sounded so much that Ash felt that he had to.

"Ok, I'll stay." He assured her. He took the Tupperware and fidgeted the noodles about.

"You haven't eaten much of this." He commented.

"Umm… I'm not hungry."

Ash smirked "Did I hear that right? Did just hear May Maple herself, in the flesh, say 'I'm not hungry'?"

"Yes."

"By Arceus!" He joked "It's a sign of the apocalypse!"

"Har-de-har-har."

Ash smirked at her disgruntled expression, he understood it was because she wasn't feeling well but he still found the thought amusing. His eyes directed back towards the Ho-oh tattooed on the left of May's face. Where the hell did she get that?

May fumbled with her blanket when he asked.

"C'mon, May." He said in a softer voice "Where did you get it?" He then decided to ask the question he had been dying to for days.

"Why are you_ here_? I thought you were in Johto."

May gulped and started picking at her noodles again.

"Ok… fine, I'll tell you."

**Cliff-hanger yay! *claps* God that flashback took forever to write. Also, I know Ash is a bit OOC in it but he kinda had to be for this story to work. I will get the next one out as quick as I can.**


	6. Chapter 6

"I did start out ok when I was in Johto." May started, still fidgeting with her un-eaten noodles. "I travelled with Drew and Harley."

Ash furrowed his brow in surprise "You did?"

"Mhmm. Things were pretty decent when we were going from town to town. But when it came to contests, that's when they would change. Back to suddenly being rivals rather than companions, but they seemed a lot harsher than before. Or maybe I'm just not as good as them-"

"Pfft, don't listen to them, your great!" Ash butted in suddenly. He had never been a big fan of those two. Drew would always put May down with insults to her honour and abilities as a trainer and Harley always seemed to take joy in harassing May, in and out of contests. Drew's views on May did improve over time but he was still a rival and Harley hadn't changed at all.

May grunted, dismissing the manner before continuing "Anyway, it went on until their 'rival' sides would start to leak out onto our relationship out of contests. They would drop hints constantly at how they would kill me at the next contest, (_I doubt they were 'hints'_, Ash thought.) and… after a while I started to get extremely stressed at a contest…" May stopped herself, remembering one particular situation when she actually hyperventilated before entering the ring for her performance.

"Well, this went on for about six months and I had barely won any ribbons. The stress was too much and I started drinking before contests."

Ash interrupted again "How much?"

"A lot." She stated before eating a small piece of chicken from the Tupperware. "But it helped so I kept doing it."

"Did it help you win Contests though?"

"A little..." May huffed and ate a couple more strands of noodle "...Actually, no, it didn't. I hid it from Drew and Harley because I was already getting enough trouble from them."

"Something like that doesn't stay hidden for long, May." Ash commented but after a swift glare from May's annoyed eyes he decided he'd better stay quiet and let her talk.

"After a while I started drinking when-ever they became too much for me to cope with, which was often. By the time of the Grand Festival I was going through about five bottles of beer a day." May paused to scratch her head, starting to regret this.

"Of course, I didn't get into the Grand Festival. Drew ended up winning it. I was happy for him but I really wished I could have joined in. Harley wouldn't let me forget it."

"Of course he did…" Ash muttered under his breath.

"Yeah… but it was after that things started to fall apart…" May looked away from him. She sighed as she started to remember…

(**Yay, another flashback! (Majorly sarcastic)**)

"_And now, let's welcome our final contestant!" The announcer shouted above the crowd of cheering spectators._

_May was standing just behind the light streaking in from the stadium. She growled and put her hands over her eyes, the roar of the crowd seemed more like the sound of a nuclear bomb going off. She staggered a little on her feet but figured she should just get on with it._

"_Oh, May honey-" Harley's voice cut into her head "Don't worry your little head about this!"_

"_Beeee quiiet." May hissed at him._

"_You don't have to be so stingy, honey, I'm trying to help ya here." He said, poking her in the chest in (what was to him) a playful manner, which caused an already unsteady May to stumble back a few steps._

"_Go awaaay Harrrley!" She snapped at him once she was able to steady herself. He did not seem very bothered by this, he just waved it off and walked past her into the backrooms with Drew and the other Co-ordinaters._

_May sighed harshly through her teeth. She took out a flask from her fanny-pack and twisted the cap off. She had already had a lot but that rubbish from Harley just deepened her bad mood. As she heard her name being called out, she took a long swig from it before closing it, putting it in her fanny-pack and emerging into the crowd._

_May groaned and rubbed her head, doing this contest was a bad idea, but it was a bit late to realise that now._

_The announcer backed off and everyone quietened down. Leaving May alone in the middle of the ring, exposed. She was raking her brain, trying to remember the routine she had been preparing. _

_Glancing to her left, she could just make out the judges through the streaks of light. They were exchanging confused looks. She must have been standing in that position for a number of minutes as one of them, Nurse Joy, made a gesture with her hand towards May._

"_Huh?" May grunted in a slurred manner before something finally clicked._

"_Oh, right, RIGHT!" She yelled loudly as she grabbed a Poke Ball from her pack._

_She threw it in the air a few times as if it was a baseball before suddenly yelling "Blazikin! Take the- ACK!" She yelped as she threw the Ball so hard, she had propelled herself forward, landing on her front. Some in the crowd laughed, others went 'Oh!' in sync. The freshly released Pokemon roared grandly before swivelling its head in an owl like manner, looking for his Trainer. It squawked and danced on the spot anxiously when he spotted her._

_The feeling in her head was the same as the sensation of being spun in a swivel chair with someone punching her in the face at the same time. The fall had caused her to bite her tongue and the taste of copper filled her mouth._

"_Oh, umm, Miss Maple are you alright?" The announcer scurried to her side and May felt her arm being grabbed._

"_Arrh, gerrofme!" May snapped as she hauled herself back onto her feet. She felt the six foot tall Eagle Pokemon's worried blue eyes boring into her. He clicked his beak a number of times, what was wrong with his Trainer?_

"_May, you're running out of time!" The announcer said suddenly causing both May and Blazikin to jump and it seemed to be the catalyst of the crowd's cheers._

"_Oh, shiiit-" May suddenly felt a vibe of panic and sickness arouse in her stomach "Uh, um, ah, BlazikinuseFireSpin!" _

"_Kin! Blaze-blaze-kin-kin!" the Pokemon chattered, sensed his trainer's panic as it started spinning, but in his confusion it seemed to share the same level of intoxication as his move was clumsy and unimpressive. There were some annoyed murmurs in the crowd. _

"_Try again!" May commanded, to which the disoriented Pokemon obeyed. This time the fire was smooth and well controlled unlike the wildfire it had been the first time. It seemed to calm the Fire/Fighting type._

_But just as things seemed to improve, the sickness she was experiencing in her system seemed to be rising. May tried to compress the feeling._

"_Blazikin, use Uppercu-!" Her order had been cut short as a horrible churning sound erupted from her stomach. She moaned and wrapped her arms around her trunk._

"_KIN!" The Pokemon barked as he turned to see his friend in distress._

"_I said Upper-" She suddenly felt it come up into her throat, her hands were shaking and her head was still spinning like a record. _

"_I-" May, putting her hand over her mouth turned and tried to run out of the ring, the dreaded sound of 'boos' climbed into the air but at this point, she didn't care._

"_Hey!" She felt something pull her back into the light. "You can't leave in the middle of your performance!" The announcer was _clearly_ not understanding the situation._

_May spun around on her heels and snarled "Liiisten, lady, I-"_

_And what happened a second later had to be the most humiliating experience she had ever had._

(**Ok, done. Thank god…**)

Ash blinked a few times "…You threw up on the stage… and then passed out?" He repeated the last sentence she had just said.

"Mhm… it was really bad, though…" May squeaked, she had covered her head with her blanket, as if terrified she was going to be pulled up for it. Ash didn't need to ask again. In any other situation, it wouldn't have been that bad… but this was a Contest! The whole thing would have been broadcasted on the TV which would have been watched by almost everyone in the region and the story would have been repeated in numerous magazines, which would have a wide readership of Co-ordinaters.

"It's alright, May, it's just us here." He patted her knee softly. He cocked his head in a number of positions, hoping he was right.

"No-" He heard her sniff from the depths of the cover "It's not alright!"

Ash sighed and looked at his feet, "May… you don't have to tell me if it's going to hurt." He felt he had to tell her that. Despite his deep curiosity, the last thing was for May to become upset. Especially with the nurses watching them both like a hawk.

"No… no, I'm fine." She emerges from the covers and sighs heavily, "Well, both Drew and Harley saw the whole thing…" Her eyes seemed to glaze over as she thought about it.

(**Aw, another one…? –Warning contains mild Drew bashing but nothing bad-**)

"_What… the bloody hell was that!?" Drew snapped._

_The two were sitting in a quiet area, away from the other Co-ordinaters. Harley had gone out for his battle (he had been accepted into the next round) and everyone else was watching that._

_May was gripping a glass of water which contained aspirin, her hands shaking._

"_I- I don't know-" She whimpered, despite emptying her insides she felt dreadful with a raging head and stomach ache, well that and the general aching in her system._

"_You… YOU DON'T KNOW!? How the flying shit did you not know what you were doing!?" He growled with his hands on his hips like a nagging mother._

_May winced, she wasn't sure if he was actually that rough or if her headache was exaggerating it._

"_I'm sorry! I-I wasn't thinking straight-"_

"_May! People know that you and I compete against each other, what do you think they will think of us now!?"_

Us? _May thought,_ what does this have to do with him?

"_They won't think any differently about you. It's me that they will see differently…"_

"_It's not just them…"_

"_What..?" May's hands began to quake more violently._

_Drew sighed heavily and took out a rose. Usually this was a positive thing but there was nothing positive about this situation._

"_May, I'm sorry but your career is over. And I don't want to go down with it." He said in what May hoped to be a rueful voice before tossing her the flower. She cupped it in her hands. It was as lovely as all the others. But when she turned around, the only thing she saw was his back._

"_Wait, Drew!" She squeaked, but he didn't respond. _

_She hadn't seen him since._

(**I swear to god, if I have to write another one of these, I'm going to break something**.)

"The next day, Harley and Drew left and I didn't know where they went. I didn't go looking for them, he made it clear that he didn't want me around."

May paused, allowing Ash to take this in.

His eyes sparked as he replayed May's story in his head. A mix of anger and sympathy. The former was towards Drew and pretty much everyone else, but also towards himself.

"…May, did I cause any of that?" He asked her after a few minutes.

May glanced at him, typical of him to think that. He was so selfless. She sighed heavily and pulled the cover back over her head.

"No, you didn't cause any of that, Ash. I brought it upon myself. It's my fault." She answered him.

"Didn't your mum or dad try to help you?"

"No…"

"Why? Oh wait- did they see-?"

"Yes, they saw the whole thing."

"…What about Max?"

May wiped her eyes as an image of her beloved brother came into her head, "I don't know. He went on his journey a few years ago… I don't know where he is. I would ask mum or dad but since we don't talk, it wouldn't do anything."

Ash was close to tearing up himself but he had to be there for May so he hid it.

"So, what happened after the whole contest thing?" He asked, seeing how May had suddenly become withdrawn and he wanted to bring her back to the living.

"I stopped competing. The thing is, I had made such an ass of myself in that one and after only a few days, everyone knew and I kept getting bother from people if I was just walking down the street. I eventually gave up on it. After a while, all I ever did was drink and feed my Pokemon."

"Oh, yeah, how are they?" Ash asked, that was something he had been thinking about.

"I sent them to Professor Oak. I couldn't look after them and they had become distant from me… well, except for Blazikin and Beautifly. They refused to leave." She took their Poke balls "Ash, can you look after them until I'm let out of here?" She asked him.

"Oh, yeah of course." He took the two of them. He put them both safely in his backpack.

The two were quiet for a number of minutes. Ash could see that May was becoming distressed talking about it and he was unsure if he should ask her to go on. But he didn't have to.

"I was really lonely… and one day I was walking down the street and passed a shop selling TVs and, by some coincidence, you were battling one of the Elites in Sinnoh. It reminded me of the times I had with you and how much I actually missed you."

"You missed me?" Ash asked, his stomach twisting a little, he really wished he could say the same thing.

"Yeah, that's why I came here to Sinnoh. I just wanted to see you again, but I didn't have any lead on where you were so I just had to go from town to town. But I didn't have any luck." May's eyes widened suddenly "Holy shit, I'm a stalker!" She squeaked, slapping either sides of her face.

Ash jumped at her sudden squeal "What? No you're not!" He wasn't sure how to feel about this. He couldn't help but feel quite touched that May missed him and wanted to be with him again, but he also felt ashamed for not realising that very fact.

"But where did you get the tattoo?" Ash's attention was brought back to it.

May hissed a sigh through her teeth "I woke up with it after a really heavy night, I don't even remember getting it." Ash blinked, he figured getting a tattoo on her temple would be rather painful and the fact she didn't know she was getting it made it sound worse.

"Oh, that's actually a relief, I thought you joined a gang or something."

"No, but I don't blame you for thinking that. You're not the only one." May admitted, remembering the jeers and looks she earned herself from strangers who happened to cross her path.

"After a while I decided to give up. I didn't think I was going to meet up with you again." Ash heard her voice drop when she said this. He gently patted her knee before he looked into his pack and took the sapphire Manaphy he taken from May before. She shuddered a little at the sight of it.

"It's ok, I'll give it to Officer Jenny." Ash assured her, hoping she wasn't worrying about it.

"…I'm not going to be arrested, am I?"

"I hope not. But I'll try and help." He put it back in his bag, "Why did you take this, anyway?"

"I got desperate… it's not the first time I've done that." May pulled her knees to her chest "I really wish I didn't." She didn't seem interested in talking anymore as she lied on her side, still facing him and closing her eyes slightly.

"May, its ok, I'm here." He ruffled her hair "You don't have to worry."

"…I'm a wreck…"

"We can fix that!" Ash pulled the blanket over her, trying to sound cheerful "I can help you, if you want."

"Hm?" She muttered sleepily.

"Yeah, and I can start by giving this to Officer Jenny." He showed her the Manaphy and ran its chain through his fingers. It was beautifully detailed and likely to be very expensive. He glanced out of the window to see it was quite late in the day. He had lost track of how long he had been with May.

He was about to speak to her before he suddenly heard her snoring softly. He decided to leave to let her sleep and come back tomorrow.

He was about to when he stopped, getting an impulse. He turned around back towards May and gently kissed her forehead.

"I'll see you tomorrow." He said softly before walking out of her room.

Pikachu, who was curled up sleeping on a chair, opened its beady eyes and squeaked with joy when he saw its master return at last.

"Hi, pal." Ash picked up the mouse and perched it on his shoulder, it seemed confused at Ash's incredibly quiet mood. Ash gave it a packet of ketchup which seemed to distract it.

As he walked down the corridor towards the cafeteria to meet Dawn, he replayed everything in his head. As far as he knew, it seemed that the higher he rose, the lower May seemed to sink. It bothered him, despite May saying it wasn't his fault. But he felt as though he was part of the reason for her misfortunes, would all of that happened to her if he had gone to Johto with her like he had promised? He shook his head, he had to help her but he didn't know how.

"I gotta help her get her life back together… but I can't think of a way." He said half to himself, half to Pikachu "Maybe if I-"

"_Where have you been, Ash Ketchum_!?" A voice shrieked behind him.

"Yow!" Ash yelped and spun around to face a very angry Dawn.

**Oh thank god, this chapter is finally done! Don't get me wrong, I love 'Rewind' and I love writing for it but this was the most difficult of the chapters so far but I think it is ok, I will edit it if I'm not happy. Also your probably thinking 'Advancedshipping finally!' sorry it took so long.**

**I'm suffering from a case of the dreaded writers block right now, by which I mean I know how I want the story to go and how it will end but it's how to get their I'm not sure of, if anyone has suggestions, feel free to PM me, I'll give you credit. Hopefully you won't have to wait long for an update!**


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